"Yo, the world?"
"Then just wait and see."
Maha's gaze flickered as he glanced at the television.
With a flap of its wings, Yatagarasu moved at a steady pace, passing everyone else to hang firmly behind Satotz.
"Impressive. Sean Zoldyck, you have quite a fine mount." Satotz, moving stiffly like a robot, swung his arms and raised his head to glance at Yatagarasu. " The Animal Path of the Six Paths of Pain. Although not as powerful as the Deva Path, his varied summons alone are enough to leave an indelible impression."
'Turning speech into telepathy... looking at him, he has no mouth. Does he really not have a mouth?'
Sean's ears twitched as he received Satotz's telepathic transmission. He looked down at the examiner from above and chuckled softly. "No matter how impressive Yatagarasu is, he can't catch up to you."
"With a Triple Limit-Broken speed... if you were to get serious, Mr. Examiner, I fear very few people would be able to pass this first phase."
From the moment he stepped out of the elevator and entered the venue, Sean had scanned the area and seen through all the candidates in this session. Aside from himself, only Illumi and Hisoka were barely worth looking at.
"Hehe. You flatter me, Mr. Sean." Satotz felt a shiver in his heart as he recalled the look Sean had just cast at him. He thought to himself that he had indeed been seen through by the other party. He shook his head. "Even if I used my true abilities, given Mr. Sean's strength to defeat Silva Zoldyck nine years ago, it wouldn't be difficult for you to easily surpass me."
"However, the young boys who accompanied you here seem to have run into trouble."
Satotz's gaze moved past the crowd to the rear of the group. Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio were nowhere to be seen.
Without Satotz's reminder, Sean already knew. The natural-born bad seed and Rookie Crusher, Tonpa, had made his move.
"Don't worry." The young man stood atop Yatagarasu's head, showing no intention of looking back. He spoke indifferently, "All three of them will become Hunters. This is just a small setback; it won't stop them."
"Hehe, you certainly have confidence in them." Satotz glanced at Sean in surprise. He hadn't expected Sean to value them so highly.
'Three brats who haven't even opened their pore nodes... can they really do it?'
Satotz, dressed like a gentleman, involuntarily quickened his pace. A light could already be seen far ahead; clearly, the end of the tunnel was approaching.
"Three minutes until the deadline."
"I apologize, Mr. Sean, but your prediction might be wrong this time."
The stairs leading to the end of the tunnel were right before them. Satotz swept his eyes over the area and did not see Gon or the others in the trailing group. He tilted his head to look at Sean.
The young man simply snapped his fingers, recalling Yatagarasu. He stepped onto a whirlwind, floating lightly down to Satotz's side, the corners of his mouth curving into a shallow arc. "Put away your pitiful En, Mr. Examiner."
"At most, two minutes. You will see them."
"Hmm." Satotz touched his sexy mustache and walked noncommittally up the stairs toward the light.
A distant cry of "Uncle!" echoed out. Satotz paused and calculated the time. Looking back, the three little ones were stepping right on the dot. Even though they were in a sorry state, they had caught up.
"Huff... Huff... Keep up! Dawn is right in front of us!"
"Ah... salvation... finally salvation..." Leorio loosened his tie. He was shirtless, gasping for air in great heaves. Supported by Kurapika, he followed Gon and practically rolled to Sean's feet.
"Uncle, we made it!" Gon held his knees, beaming a bright smile at Sean.
Sean nodded and glanced at Satotz. Satotz's eye twitched as he dropped a single word: "Congratulations." Then he flashed forward, exiting the tunnel first.
'What a pity... that congratulations sounded somewhat reluctant.' Sean smiled wickedly and patted Gon's head. "Let's go."
Gon nodded vigorously and walked alongside Sean, heading up the stairs. On the way, a white blur dashed right under Sean's nose. As he passed, Killua let out a heavy, cold snort at Sean, tucked his skateboard under his arm, and sped past.
"Don't forget, Killua is the next head of the Zoldyck family."
"Sometimes, I hope you can show him a little more respect." Illumi, following closely behind Killua, walked side by side with Hisoka. He passed Sean expressionlessly, holding it in for a long time before finally unable to resist admonishing Sean. He never expected—
A familiar large foot flew out. Illumi couldn't dodge it even if he wanted to. It planted directly onto his face, kicking him right out of the tunnel.
"What the fuck, getting cocky aren't you?"
"Do you really think just because you stuck some pins in your face, you don't have to call me Big Brother?"
Sean retracted his foot and glanced expressionlessly at Hisoka again. The magician whistled, giving Sean a thumbs-up. "Nice kick."
Then he sped off, chasing after Illumi's figure.
Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio were left standing there, staring wide-eyed at each other.
"Alright, stop spacing out." Sean patted Gon on the head, took a large stride, and led the way out of the tunnel exit.
"Oh... Oh..." The three little ones snapped back to reality and hurriedly followed. What greeted their eyes was a misty swamp. They assumed this must be the second phase.
Unfortunately... it was not.
"Liar! That guy is lying!"
The three, still gasping for breath, stood next to Sean. Before they could even regulate their breathing, they suddenly heard a noise.
A commotion erupted ahead.
In the center of the noise, a man with short brown hair wearing a green top walked out from a corner, dragging a man-like ape in his hand.
Looking closely at the ape's face, it was a carbon copy of the examiner, Satotz!
Immediately, this drew everyone's attention.
"Eh?" Gon let out a strange cry. "Why are there two examiners?!"
His voice voiced everyone's confusion, while implicitly vibrating Sean's eardrums until they hurt. The kid was still too shallow.
He hadn't realized that the real first phase had only just begun.
"The Swindler's Swamp... The paradise of Man-faced Apes... The habitat of many magical beasts, the Numere Wetlands. Interesting."
The manga was reflecting into reality. Sean glanced indifferently at the man with short brown hair, the six-pointed star flashing in the depths of his eyes. The words "Man-faced Ape" echoed in his mind.
[Identify—]
[Species: Man-faced Ape.]
[Strength: 150-200.]
[Speed: 150-250.]
[Aura Amount: 0.]
[Level: E.]
[Inferred Origin—Dark Continent]
'Dark Continent?'
'So, any species that isn't human or humanoid, as long as it's classified as a "Magical Beast", originates from the Dark Continent?'
Sean smiled playfully and glanced at Satotz's tie. He silently mouthed a sentence: 'The old man is playing a big game.'
A faint electronic arc flashed.
In the Hunter Association Chairman's office, Netero noticed the look Sean cast and chuckled.
"Why look at this old man? It's just a Man-faced Ape. Who says a family can't raise a few magical beasts?"
"Heh. Do you really not understand, or are you pretending?" Maha lay back on the sofa, seemingly having just woken up. He subtly mocked Netero. "You were told to keep magical beasts, but not beasts from the Dark Continent. That Kiriko, and now this Man-faced Ape, their intelligence is high enough to play humans like monkeys."
"Stinking brat, don't tell this old man you don't know anything."
Netero stroked his beard, answering a completely different question with a hum. "Where there are people, there is a distinct world. The Hunter Association is not a monolith, and it is certainly not ruled by this old man alone."
"Then it wasn't you, it was someone else!" Maha sneered coldly. "Let me guess. The only one who could do something like this under your nose—"
"Is that unpresentable rat, right?"
Zodiac Rat, Pariston. Vice Chairman of the Hunter Association. Also a major black hand behind the Chimera Ant incident.
"Heh. With him involved, nothing is surprising."
Netero remained silent for a long time before saying faintly, "What a Hunter needs is not just strength, but also the ability to distinguish right from wrong, a heart that remains steadfast through storms, a will undisturbed by external temptations, and the ability to handle all future emergencies."
"Who raised them is not important. What is important is... to pass the hurdle before their eyes, they must distinguish right from wrong."
"And Man-faced Apes are experts at deception. As alternative examiners for this level, they are most suitable."
Just as the Chairman finished speaking—
The bushes rustled. Aside from the green-clad, brown-haired man who had walked out earlier, several more Man-faced Apes took advantage of the distraction to sneak into the crowd. This triggered wave after wave of commotion.
One ape turned into Bourbon the snake handler... One turned into Ponzu the beekeeper... One turned into Hanzo the bald ninja... There were even apes turning into Pokkle and Todo. Even—
Sean saw another version of himself.
That person was three meters tall, with a face handsome beyond measure. He walked slowly toward Sean, expressionless. To the naked eye, he appeared exactly the same as Sean.
Gon noticed this scene, rubbed his eyes, and screamed, "Uncle, he looks exactly like you!"
Same height. Same aura. Same attire. Following Satotz, the brat was confused again.
"You idiot." Leorio rolled up his sleeves and gave Gon a punch. "One of them must be fake!"
"Ouch... You hit me again..." Gon cried out in pain, holding his head and glaring angrily at Leorio.
But then his eyes suddenly widened.
'Ghost! Why are there two Leorios now?!'
Next to one Leorio, there was another Leorio.
He was also holding a briefcase. Seeing Gon look over, he spread his hands innocently. "Gon, don't be fooled!"
"I didn't hit you! It was this impostor who hit you!"
"Bullshit! You're the impostor! Gon, open your eyes and look, I am Leorio!"
"You're the one spouting bullshit!" The other Leorio walked aggressively up to Gon, grabbed his shoulder, and said seriously, "Look closely at me. I am the real one; he is the fake one!"
"Fuck you, who told you to impersonate me?" One Leorio snapped and kicked the other Leorio.
"Hey! You dare hit me?" The other Leorio got angry. Not showing any weakness, he swung his palm at the first Leorio.
Soon, the two Leorios were wrestling together.
Gon was completely dumbfounded.
The spiky-haired kid clasped his hands together, smoke practically rising from his forehead.
With his limited brain capacity, judging who was real and who was fake was truly difficult for him. Helpless, Gon could only turn to the team's brain, Kurapika.
He turned to look at Kurapika—
Two Kurapikas were standing there, arms crossed, chins held, scrutinizing each other without saying a word.
Ugh. Gon: "..."
He felt numb.
He wailed, "Oh heavens... can someone tell me, which is real and which is fake?"
'Ging... Dad... I really can't tell, I can't tell anymore.'
"Sigh." Just then, a sigh reached Gon's ears. Someone extended a helping hand and patted Gon's shoulder.
Gon was moved to tears and turned to look.
Another Gon blinked at him and smiled. "I can understand how you feel, but could you please stop impersonating me?"
"Eh? What the hell?"
"Why is there another me?"
Gon whipped out his fishing rod, gripping it in his hand as he demanded, "Who exactly are you?"
"I should be asking you that!" The other Gon also whipped out a fishing rod and held it.
Their movements were identical. It was impossible to distinguish the real from the fake with the naked eye.
Situations like this were blossoming everywhere in the crowd.
Two Tonpas... two Killuas... two Gittarackurs... two Hisokas...
Good lord... did they run into a pack of Man-faced Apes right out the gate?
"Attention!" At this moment, Examiner Satotz's voice rang out.
"The swamp beneath our feet is called the Numere Wetlands."
"Most people call this place the Swindlers Swamp."
"It is also the only path to the venue of the Second Phase."
"The creatures in this wetland will use any means to disguise themselves, then capture prey to eat."
"That is why this place is known as the Swindlers Swamp."
"As you have seen."
'Seen your big head! Why didn't you say so earlier?!'
Creak— The heavy door leading back to the tunnel slammed shut.
The crowd and the "monkey pack" exploded into chaos.
Leorio was pinned under the other Leorio, taking two solid punches to the face. He cried out in pain, "Damn it! I'm about to be beaten to death and you only tell us now? Did you do this on purpose?"
"That's why I said I am the examiner and he is the fake!" The man with green clothes and brown hair shook his hand and threw the Man-faced Ape onto the ground. He pointed indignantly at Satotz. "It's all him. If not for him, how would you have fallen into this current predicament?!"
"He definitely led you into a trap on purpose to eat you!"
"Damn it, were we really tricked?" The furious candidates began to close in on Satotz.
Satotz watched coldly, saying nothing. From a distance, a string of perverted laughter, "Oh ho ho ho," resonated through the sky.
"Oh ho ho ho... this is simply too interesting."
Swish. A playing card struck the fake Hisoka. The Man-faced Ape that had transformed into Hisoka revealed its true form. Hisoka stomped its head, causing brain matter to burst out on the spot. It was dead beyond dead.
"Actually... solving this dilemma is very simple. One card for each person. As long as we kill all these monkeys, won't that settle it?"
Hisoka stretched his hands, pulling the poker cards like an accordion. The perverted smile reappeared on his face, the corners of his mouth hooking up deeply into a V-shape, indescribably eerie and terrifying.
"Are you kidding? How do you tell who is real and who is fake?"
"What if you kill the wrong person?"
"Besides, I can't catch your cards!"
"Exactly! If I die here for no reason! Even if I become a vengeful ghost, I won't let you off, Hisoka..."
Damn it. Real and fake examiners in front, a crazy magician behind, and impostor Man-faced Apes all around.
Immediately, people resisted, bracing themselves to reject Hisoka's proposal.
The crowd was furious and united against a common enemy.
But...
"Oh ho ho ho... I am notifying you, not discussing with you..."
Hisoka spread his arms, his body beginning to tremble uncontrollably. He muttered to himself, "Ah... too much trash. It's almost stinking up my precious apples..."
"I must get rid of them all."
"Don't you agree... my dearest Teacher Ben An?"